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Terra Virsilas

Bio

Terra Virsilas is a program coordinator for EMBARQ where she supports work on a variety of projects including those in India, Latin America and CAT Sustainable Cities.

Prior to joining WRI, Terra pursued her interest in urban watershed restoration by interning with Montgomery County Department of Environmental Protection’s (DEP) stream-monitoring division. During her time with DEP, she gained experience in field sampling: benthic macroinvertebrate, amphibian, reptile and fish collection and identification; habitat assessments; physical and chemical data analysis, and geomorphological stream surveying. She worked on compiling data for several stream restoration projects, as well as created and updated GIS maps for public outreach events and the Maryland Amphibian and Reptile Atlas.

Terra has a bachelor’s degree in environmental management from the University of Maryland University College and is pursuing a masters degree in Urban Studies and Planning from the University of Maryland. As an undergrad, she participated in an EPA funded project linking sustainability with behavioral science. She contributed research and content and aided in the development of an educational website focusing on the importance of the three R’s: reduce, reuse and recycle. The project was presented at the EPA’s annual People, Prosperity and the Planet (P3) event in Washington, D.C.

Blog Posts

A good home gives families a base to build the foundations of society, but in urbanizing areas, good housing can be difficult to find. People like Jussara and her family in Porte Alegre, Brazil, face a trio of critical challenges to locating affordable housing that apply in many growing cities worldwide.

About one billion people live in slums or informal settlements. Thailand's Bann Mankong program, which improved the living conditions of more than 90,000 households at a cost of just $570 per family, offers lessons on solutions.